Lesson no. 17: Happiness is caring about the happiness of those you love.

He who spends too long regretting his ruined crop will be neglect to plant next year's harvest.

Eros is not tranquil-it gives us spikes of happiness rather than a constant feeling of wellbeing. It's the love we feel at the beginning of a love affair and corresponds to the expression 'falling in love' since it is as involuntary an impulse as a physical fall.

It's one thing thinking something and another thing knowing it.

We fall in love or stay in love with people who are unsuitable or who no longer love us and, conversely, we feel no love towards people who would be very suitable. Love is involuntary, that's the problem. Our personal histories prepare us to be attracted to people who unconsciously evoke emotions from our childhood or adolescence.

You must be careful when you ask people whether they’re happy; it’s a question that can upset them a great deal.

Many people see happiness only in their future.